Wife for a Year

Chapter 9

Dedicated to all my readers and followers! Thank you! It's my first time having a placing on wattpad. Thank you for making Wife for a Year #595 on Non-Teen Fiction! Couldn't have done it without you guys!

Chapter 9

The ballroom was filled with people by the time they arrived. Conversation and laughter filled her ears as she entered the room. She was not allowed to enter the room with Rashiq as their marriage was still under wraps. Rashiq had urged her into the hall and told her that he would be there shortly. He had left after gently kissing her forehead outside the side doors.

She wanted to cry at his sweet gesture. She was falling in love with him. Now that she acknowledged the truth that she had been trying to deny herself all this while, her heart hurt because she knew Rashiq would never feel more than affection and lust towards her. Taking a flute of wine from the passing waiter, she gulped it down in one gulp.

The people around her stared at her weirdly because they knew she didn't belong here. She was a stranger to them. Whispers broke out amongst the people in the room. Still, Annabelle held her head high and walked to her table. Even if the people didn't know it, she was still a Rashiq's wife and she would do him proud. The main doors at the entrance of the hall opened. Rashiq walked in with his father at his side. He looked so regal that she could hardly believe that she was married to him. Her heart beat faster as he passed by her. He casted her a polite smile and walked on. Once he and his father were seated at the front of the hall, the dinner began officially.

Annabelle was to be seated at a table with nine other people. The seating arrangement here was arranged by age and gender, Rashiq had told her earlier, unless you were married, male and female sat apart. And since Rashiq's and her marriage were a secret, they could not sit together. She was seated at a table with a few other young ladies. They all looked very pretty in their robes of different colours. All of them around the table introduced themselves. One name in particular took her interest. Hanna. Rashiq's ex-fiancée. Taking a sip of her drink, Annabelle perused the young girl over the rim of her glass. She was very pretty. Her eyes had been made up with kohl around the edges, her cheeks had a natural pink hue to it and she looked every part of a rich princess in her purple flowing robe. She would have been prettier if it wasn't for the continuous scowl on her face aimed at Annabelle.

Uncomfortable with the glare she was receiving from Hanna, Annabelle excused herself to go to the bathroom. Staring at the mirror, looking back at herself, Annabelle wondered what was wrong with her. She used to be tougher. Ever since, Rashiq came into her life, she had grown dependant on him being there for her. He was only going to be there for a year. She had to make - The door to the bathroom opened. Annabelle turned to see who entered.

It was Hanna.

Hanna walked to the sink and began washing her hands before gently touching her hair securing the loose ends were pinned properly, and then drying her hand on a paper towel. She turned to look at Annabelle, the scowl still visible on her pretty face. "You came with Rashiq, didn't you?"

Annabelle was about to deny it but Hanna just continued, "You don't have to deny it. I saw him kissing you outside the ballroom. I don't care what meaningless relationship you have with him. Just know that at the end of the day, the person he'll be marrying will be me. You're just his temporary slut of the week or month. The real deal is me. We'll be getting married in two years, as soon as I turn twenty." And then she left.

Annabelle gripped the edge of the sink tightly. If she didn't, she might slide onto the floor. Annabelle's eyes burned but she could not - would not - cry. What did she expect? She knew that things were too good to be true. Her heart broke remembering all the times that he had been so tender with her. It was all lies. For all she knew, she wasn't even really married to him. He had called the shots all the while. Not this time. She would muster the rest of her dignity, go out there, finish the dinner and later, after the dinner, tell Rashiq that she was going home.

She fixed her make-up, left the bathroom and returned to her seat. Hanna's face was no longer etched in a scowl but instead she had a tiny smile that would have passed off as an innocent but Annabelle knew it wasn't. It was a smile of victory. Annabelle smiled at the rest of the people at the table before drinking her drink in one gulp. She picked up her fork and began to eat. The least she could do for herself was to go home with a full stomach, right?

It was a customary tradition for the crown prince and the sultan hosting the party to stop at every table and wish all their guests. This also meant that he and his father did not get to eat because they would spend at least ten minutes at each table, be it talking politics or business. He couldn't wait to get to Annabelle's table. With each table he scoured, he was one table closer to Annabelle. He told himself that the reason why he wanted to see her was because he was curious on how she was coping with his people but when he finally reached her table, he knew why he wanted to see her. Every moment he spent with her, he felt at peace. His hatred towards his father did not disappear but it lessened.

He tried catching her eye when he arrived at her table but she kept avoiding his gaze. She just kept eating and drinking. His eyes roved over her, she still looked as delectable as earlier but something had changed, and he could feel it. When he finally caught her eyes, his breath caught. Her eyes. Her eyes lacked warmth. Warmth that he finally realized was what that gave him peace. His heart clenched, unease slithering in at seeing her eyes devoid of any emotion. What had happened in the last hour since he had last seen her? When he passed by her at the entrance, she still had the warmth in her eyes as she gazed at him. But now? What had happened?

"Are you moving, son?"

He stared at his father for a long while before nodding.

He cast a last look at Annabelle before moving on to the other tables. He would speak to her later.

The dinner ended late at night, nearly midnight. Annabelle was already in the room when Rashiq arrived. She had showered and dressed for bed, one hand holding a pillow. Trying to quell the feeling that something bad was about to happen, Rashiq smiled at Annabelle.

"Hey, how did you find the dinner?"

"It was good."

"You can go to bed first; I'll be a while in the shower."

"Rashiq, we need to talk."

"We can talk tomorrow, I'm sure you must be tired."

"Rashiq, I'm going home."

Edited on 11th June 2015